Michigan Jury Finds Lead Smelter Firm Not Liable for Injuries

A jury has awarded $117,000 in damages and $220,000 for legal and other fees to neighbors of a lead smelting company that once operated in northeast Detroit.

The Detroit Free Press reported the Wayne County jury reached its decision in a lawsuit against NL Industries, which ran Master Metals until 1974.

But the jury determined the company was not negligent in operating the smelter and not liable for injury claims. The property was cleaned up in 1999.

Some plaintiffs say they suffer memory loss and had trouble focusing in school.

An attorney for NL Industries declined to comment.

More than 1,000 people living near the plant or who worked in the facility have filed suit against the company.